It's Official Rebel will have 2 Divisions

[Dream_Police]

Oaklawn has made it official. They released a statement saying that the Rebel will have 2 Divisions even if there are not 20 entries.



https://www.horseracingnation.com/news/Its_official_Rebel_Stakes_2019_to_split_in_two_div isions_123

[Dream_Police]

Bob gets to keep his two big guns separate with each going into the separate divisions.

[dilanesp]

They should call one The Rebel snd the other The Union.

[Dream_Police]

Could be the Blue Division and the Grey Division. I am sure that would be considered politically incorrect.

[dilanesp]

Could be the Blue Division and the Grey Division. I am sure that would be considered politically incorrect.


That will work too! :)

[Afleet]

Oaklawn also raised purses again. Why not lower the take? They already raised purses twice this season. I guess we are seen by the powers to be as degenerates

[davew]

Bob gets to keep his two big guns separate with each going into the separate divisions.

and both lose by a nose in exciting finishes

[Thomas Roulston]

Of course if Oaklawn had my prototype design - which features a 120-foot-wide dirt track - this would not have happened, since a track of that width could comfortably accommodate a 20-horse field (the E. P. Taylor Turf Course at Woodbine is also 120 feet wide, and they requested permission to run 20-horse fields in turf races when Woodbine hosted the Breeders' Cup in 1996, but the stuffed shirts at Breeders' Cup Ltd, turned them down - while concomitantly allowing Rick's Natural Star to become the Great Redeemer of the Breeders' Cup by granting that horse permission to run in the Breeders' Cup Turf).

[cj]

Of course if Oaklawn had my prototype design - which features a 120-foot-wide dirt track - this would not have happened, since a track of that width could comfortably accommodate a 20-horse field (the E. P. Taylor Turf Course at Woodbine is also 120 feet wide, and they requested permission to run 20-horse fields in turf races when Woodbine hosted the Breeders' Cup in 1996, but the stuffed shirts at Breeders' Cup Ltd, turned them down - while concomitantly allowing Rick's Natural Star to become the Great Redeemer of the Breeders' Cup by granting that horse permission to run in the Breeders' Cup Turf).

Of course no trainer is going to want to show up and run in a 20 horse field not named the Kentucky Derby either.

[Thomas Roulston]

They do it all the time in the UK, Ireland, and Australia - run races with 20+ horses in them.

Of course all of those races are on turf, and just about all of them are on less-than-firm turf (not sure if that has anything to do with it).

[dilanesp]

Interestingly, Oaklawn never used the term "divisions" in the presentation of the race. Each race was just called "The Rebel", and they clearly told Vic not to use the word "division".

This was obviously some obscure marketing angle.

[Dahossdaboss]

They do it all the time in the UK, Ireland, and Australia - run races with 20+ horses in them.

Of course all of those races are on turf, and just about all of them are on less-than-firm turf (not sure if that has anything to do with it).

I think you missed his point. No trainer trying to secure points to get into the gate for the Derby is going to want to run in a 20 horse race BEFORE the Derby.

[Thomas Roulston]

I think you missed his point. No trainer trying to secure points to get into the gate for the Derby is going to want to run in a 20 horse race BEFORE the Derby.


You are correct in that finishing 5th in a 20-horse field would yield 0 points - but there are plenty of other races all year long where fields of greater than 14 are possible. Abu Dhabi, Dubai etc. not only observe a 16-horse maximum, but have 16-horse gates so that there is no auxiliary gate if the field is 15 or 16.